Harden doesn’t doubt Morey’s recruiting power

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THE WOODLANDS — Though he does not plan to join the recruiting efforts for LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony, Rockets All-Star James Harden would not bet against Rockets general manager Daryl Morey landing one of the prized free agents next month.

Speaking at a public appearance in The Woodlands, Harden said players at that level know what they want in free agency, but hoped one would choose to find it by joining forces with him and Dwight Howard in Houston.

“Daryl is very aggressive,” Harden said. “That’s the reason I’m here. That’s the reason Dwight’s here. He’s focused on what he wants and he’s going to go get it.”

James and Anthony opted out of their contracts with the Heat and Knicks, respectively. Both could return to their current teams, but Anthony in particular has indicated that he will closely examine his options. The Rockets are in a position to offer a max or near max contracts with a few roster moves.

“It would help us a lot,” Harden said of adding one of the league’s top stars. “It would take a lot of the offensive load off me and Dwight. It’ll be good for our team and hopefully we can get somebody to help us.

“It’ll definitely be exciting. There’ll be a lot of buzz around the city. It’ll give up a lot better chance to win. Obviously, we had a pretty good year this past year. Obviously, that would help us a lot. They are two terrific players. They’re both great players. Hopefully we’ll get one of those guys.”